Day 3: 5 Days in Nagano and Tokyo

On my 3rd day in Nagano, I went to the old post town of Narai-juku in Shiojiri City and then went straight to Nagano City to visit Zenko-ji Temple. Later in the afternoon, I traveled back to Tokyo.

Read the Day 1-2 blog post of my 5 days trip in Nagano and Tokyo here

Narai-juku

5 Days in Nagano and Tokyo — Narai-juku features Edo Period houses stretching up to 1km

The old post town of Narai-juku is located along Kiso Valley. The street is lined with Edo Period houses stretching up to 1km. Some houses were converted to traditional inns or ryokan, souvenir shops, and restaurants. Many houses are still inhabited by the locals.

Near the old town of Narai, you will find Kiso Ohashi (Kiso Bridge), a wooden bridge stretching over Narai River. This bridge was built using 300 year old cypress wood.

Getting There:

From Shiojiri Station or Matsumo Station take a local train bound for Nakatsugawa or Kiso-Fukushima. Alight at Narai Station.

Zenko-ji Temple

Zenko-ji Temple is one of Japan’s oldest temples. It was built 1400 years ago and houses the first Buddhist statue that came to Japan. Admission to Sanmon Gate and Main Hall is 500 yen each but you can explore the temple grounds for free. The area surrounding the temple features other religious structures. Souvenir shops and restaurants are also lined up from Zenkoji Temple Deva to Zenkoji Sanmon gate.

Getting There:

From Narai Station take a local train to Shiojiri Station or Matsumoto Station then take the JR Shinano train to Nagano Station. Travel time is about an hour. Don’t forget to reserve a seat using your JR East Pass (Nagano-Niigata Area). From Nagano Station, Zenko-ji temple can be reached by foot in about 30 minutes or 10 minutes by bus. You can also take the Nagano Dentetsu subway line to Zenkojishita Station and walk for about 5 to 10 minutes.

Shinjuku

From Nagano Station, you can take the Hokuriku Shinkansen to Ueno Station. Then transfer to Yamanote Line for Shinjuku Station. These are all covered by the JR East Pass (Nagano-Niigata Area).

2 full days in Nagano are over, now it’s time to head back to Tokyo. After dropping my bags at Do-C Gotanda, a capsule hotel in Shinagawa, I went to Shinjuku to meet a friend for dinner, sightseeing and some drinks.

Shinjuku is one of the busiest wards in Tokyo. It houses one of the world’s busiest railway station, commercial establishments, and government offices.

You can visit the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building which has free entrance to the observation deck of each tower. The observation decks offers 360 views of Tokyo and surrounding cities. If it’s a clear day, you will be able to see Mt. Fuji as well.

Strolling around Shinjuku at night was also fun. With hundreds of restaurants to choose from, it was a challenge to decide where to eat. We ended eating at a local diner serving Japanese dishes.

We capped the night with some drinks at Ni-chome then headed to the station just before the last train on Yamanote Line departs.

That’s it for my 3rd day in Japan. Tomorrow we’ll explore the rest of Tokyo!